I Love This Quote!

"Children are the living messages we send to a time we will not see." ~Neil Postman

Saturday, May 17, 2014

Creating An Affirming Environment


 

If I were to create my own family child care home, I would make sure to create a very welcoming setting. I would make sure that the place is open, spacious, and bright. I always find that bright and spacious child care centers have a friendly aura. I would also make sure that I include the children and their families throughout the center. This would help create a classroom environment that is unique. “Because the physical environment begins with who children are, each early childhood classroom will have its own unique look” (Derman-Sparks & Edwards, 2010). I like how Adriana, from the media segment, had a family culture display in which she changed each month to represent all of the children in her program. I think that would be something that I would also like to do. I even like her idea of using the students within her class on the display posters. “To ensure that all children and families in a program are visible in your learning environment, you may need to supplement purchased materials by making your own” (Derman-Sparks & Edwards, 2010). Another thing I would like to do is expand the respect and understanding of diversity. Implementing the different shades of bean bags as ways to compare and contrast skin tones was a brilliant idea from Adriana (Laureate Education Inc., 2011). I would focus on creating a child-friendly, family-welcoming, diverse learning environment.

 

References

Derman-Sparks, L., & Edwards, J. O. (2010). Anti-bias education for young children and ourselves. Washington, DC: National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC).    

Laureate Education, Inc. (2011). Strategies for working with diverse children: Welcome to an anti-bias learning community. Baltimore, MD: Author

2 comments:

  1. Hi Ashley,
    I really enjoyed your post! I love how you would make your classroom bright. I think that sunshine creates an infectious feeling of happiness. Personally, the children in my class generally seem happier when it's a sunny day. Also, I thought it was a great idea to supply different shades of skin tones in objects such as bean bags. It is a simple, yet effective way to teach children about diversity in physical appearance. Great post!

    Krissy

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  2. Ashley,

    Children love colorful and bright things! It grasp their attention and they are immediately drawn into it. I liked how you mentioned that you want your home to be spacious. Children need plenty of space to play with their peers and explore. I believe that your family child care home would be very welcoming and comfortable. I enjoyed reading your ideas.

    Latasha

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